Thomas Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924)
28th President of the United States of America
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was born on December 28, 1856 in Staunton Virginia. His father was a pastor; his family had to move to Augusta, Georgia less than one year after he was born. For the first ten years of his life he was not able to read. Despite this hindrance he is still the only president to earn a doctoral degree. The college that “Tommy” attended was Princeton University which he graduated from in 1879.
After graduating from Princeton, Woodrow went to the University of Virginia law school. After he graduated from Virginia Law School, he started teaching at Bryn Mawr College. In 1885 he married Ellen Axon and they had three daughters. In 1890 he returned to Princeton University as a professor. In 1902 he became the president of Princeton and went on to become the Governor of New Jersey in 1910. His first wife died in 1914, so he remarried Edith Bolling Galt in 1915. He was elected President in 1912, and again in 1916, just before the US entered War I.
In 1919, while still in office, Wilson suffered a stroke that paralyzed the entire left side of his body, and blinded him in his left eye. He never fully recovered, and it was kept a secret from the public until after his death. He lived out the rest of his life in Washington DC, spending most of his time at the theater. He died on February 3, 1924 at the age of 67, and he was buried at the Washington National Cathedral.
"Woodrow Wilson" Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2013. <http://www.woodrowwilson.org/>;.
US Neutrality in World War I
When the “Great War” started in 1914 the United States was quick to declare its neutrality in the war. They also isolated themselves from the rest of the world, which I think lead them into the fray. When refugees from Europe entered the United States, they quickly told of the horror of this war, Congress felt that they had made the right decision in staying out of Europe. Luckily since the president at the time had a doctoral degree in modern history, he knew just what to do to make sure that the US would stay neutral.
Although the US was isolated, they still traded with both sides that were fighting but to a much lesser degree with Germany and this was primarily because of a naval blockade along the German coast. I think this is what causes the Germans to declare unrestricted submarine warfare on the US, because they thought they were siding with the British. While the US was still neutral it tried to act as an intermediary between the two powers, the Germans were happy to oblige but the British wanted no part of this. To make matters worse the British started to destroy any vessel that was carrying goods to Germany.
American and British relations reached an all-time low during the Easter Rising in Ireland, since many Americans in the Northeast were of Irish decent; they thought that they US should join the side of the Germans in the war. What ultimately leads to the US entering the war was a telegram from the Germans to the Mexican Government asking for their alliance during the war. Most people think that this message was sent because Germany thought that US involvement was imminent and that they should have somebody to fight the US on their own soil.
"America and World War One." America and World War One. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2013. <http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/america_and_world_war_one.htm>;
Comments
Greta indo but be sure to include your personal thoughts!